BENGALURU: Bengaluru needs a whopping Rs 2,800 crore to fix its stormwater drain network to prevent future flooding and devastation, according to a report by Knight Frank India, a real estate consultancy firm. The report -- Bengaluru Urban Floods -- released on Wednesday, stressed that there is a desperate need for master plan to pave a way forward in dealing with flood-like situations in the coming years.
The firm also mentioned that restoration and construction of Bengaluru’s stormwater infrastructure are of prime importance to avoid social and economic losses due to urban flooding. The report said the city’s share of built-up area ballooned to 93% in 2020 from 37% in 2002.
The existing population already has a cascading impact along with rapid real estate development around lakes and over stormwater drains in the city, the report said.
Last year’s flooding was due to the decline in the city’s capacity to absorb rainwater significantly. Currently, Bengaluru has 842 km of primary and secondary drainage. To complement the spatial expansion, the city broadly requires an addition of 658 km of primary and secondary drains, the firm said.